Eight months living out of a car, housesitting or staying every few nights in a different Airbnb. So, when the opportunity arose to stay in a lovely beach resort, I jumped at it.

I was more than ready to indulge in a little luxury.

Photo Credit: Seven Mile Beach Resort.

Seven Mile Beach Resort is the epitome of beachy stay. Not only is it located directly across the road from the very clean, very peaceful, Seven Mile Beach, the resort itself is planned out the villas so well that you never really feel on top of your neighbours. In fact, you may not even realise they are there. (Unless of course they decide to rock out to some eighties music, singing at the top of their lungs mid-morning, but you’ll probably want to sing along – I did!)

The location of the Ramada Seven Mile Beach Resort is surprisingly quiet for being situated only five minutes from the airport. There’s a new road that goes directly from the airport around to Seven Mile Beach. It makes things very convenient when coming into the area. Your GPS’ instructions may have other ideas however, as it’s a new road, and may take you on a giant loop to get to the resort itself.

Don’t be perturbed by the idea of being so close to the airport though. You can hear the planes come in, but Hobart is not a busy airport and it’s only once in a while that you’ll notice the planes anyway. You’ll be too distracted by your surroundings.

A better sound, especially at night, is the sound of breaking waves on the beach when you when you have your ample windows and doors open. The sound is so relaxing.

My experience.

When I walked into the two-bedroom villa I was assigned to, I found myself overwhelmed at how much space there was.

It was really large and was on not one, but two levels. Downstairs provided the master bedroom with ensuite, a second bedroom with two single beds, a full bathroom with bathtub (oh my!), and a laundry offering both washer and dryer, with drying racks in the bedroom closets. In the hall closet, an umbrella was even provided, along with the usual offerings a self-contained unit needs to keep things nice and tidy.

Upstairs was open plan with a full kitchen, full dining, and living room. There was a large television with options for both television channels and movies. Outside, on the balcony, a huge picnic table was set up with chairs for many to gather. Another bathroom finished off the space.

And this was all for me? Wow.

Truly, I felt… well, lost. Overwhelmed. I was not used to all this space!

A great family getaway solution.

For a family, this would be ideal for a week’s holiday at the beach. Perfect really. It’s within a 20-minute drive from Hobart. It’s only 75-minutes from Port Arthur. It’s 20-minutes to Richmond. And, as mentioned, 5-minutes from the airport and across the road from the beach. It’s in a perfect position.

Add in the amenities and you’re golden: pool, game room, tennis…

I mean the game room alone is a kid’s idea of Christmas come true! Pool table, electronic games, PlayStation. And for the adults, there is Happy Hour from 5-6pm!

But really, it’s the villas that make it.

My recommendation is to join thePrivileges Club where you can gain more for your stay: unlimited movies and upgraded WiFi.

Okay, so this all sounds ideal, right?!

Well, I wouldn’t be fair to leave you with that. There were some negatives.

While I loved that you could check out at noon, check-in wasn’t until 4 pm.

Most accommodations nowadays have a check-in at 2 pm and people are used to that. Being 4 pm, I could only think of the families flying into Hobart with their luggage, all of their kid’s stuff, etc. and having to deal with all that in their rental car for the day.

Yes, I’m sure that the Ramada would allow you to leave your luggage with them while you explored for the day, but really, how many people do that if they have a car? I’ve certainly left my luggage after checkout in big cities when I’ve had a late flight etc. but it seemed that 4 pm was a bit late for a check-in.

As I mentioned, the Seven Mile Beach Resort is convenient to get around Hobart and the surrounding areas… if you have a car.

It’s not easy to get in and around if you don’t. Add in that there are very few restaurants in the area. There are really only two in walking distance: The Seven Mile Beach Store, which has a takeaway and is more of a convenience store, and the resort’s Beaches Restaurant & Bar. Everything else is at least 7km away.

The Seven Mile Beach Resort is really set up to be self-contained and, without a car, it’s difficult to get even the basic supermarket supplies. The nearest supermarkets are at least a 10-minute drive away, either in Sorell or Rosny Park.

I was curious to try was the Beaches restaurant.

There was a wedding the evening I arrived, so I wasn’t able to try dinner, but it looked really inviting from the outside. Monday morning allowed me an opportunity to try their buffet breakfast.

I’ll say this: The restaurant is convenient but you are far better off making breakfast in your own villa. When I entered, I felt like I had walked into a budget Best Western. I was sorely disappointed. The offerings are nothing more than a few options of cereal, some premade yogurt concoction, and some heat pans containing eggs, bacon etc. You can use the fancy pancake maker, but the result is undercooked rubbery pikelets. When I went looking for a good cup of coffee, I was sad to see it was extra from the already overpriced $18/person buffet. Coffee was on offer, but it was watered-down filtered coffee. I had better in my villa. Plus the seating did not say quality to me at all. It really was a major let down. No wonder it was empty.

Overall, I felt conflicted by my stay at the Seven Mile Beach Resort.

I had high expectations. I expected it to be more luxurious than it was.

Don’t get me wrong, the villa felt luxurious to me. It was styled nicely and was very comfortable. And, it offered great conveniences like unlimited movies and a french press for the morning coffee. The bed was very comfortable and the bathrooms were clean and spacious. The gardens were lovely to walk through, especially early in the morning when the resort was still waking. And of course, the pool was a nice option when you didn’t want the beach.

But it was clearly a family offering.

It was not the place to indulge in a little luxury like spa offerings, nor could I see if as a place for a romantic getaway, especially given the number of kids around. It was not the place with a lot of dining options if one didn’t feel like cooking unless you were willing to drive 20-minutes one way to find the options.

For a family stay, however, this is the perfect place to base for a Hobart stay. And I understand, now, that is perfect for that.

Would I stay again at Seven Mile Beach Resort again? Maybe, but the stay would definitely involve my family, for a ‘week at the beach’ kind of stay.

Click here for the latest pricing and availability for the Ramada Seven Mile Beach Resort. If you are looking to book during school and public holidays, it’s recommended that you contact the resort directly: sevenmilebeach.reception@wyn.com or call (03) 6248 6222.

PLEASE NOTE: I do not promote any brand I have not used or experienced myself. All opinions are my own. I am always honest in my opinions and will always offer a full picture of the experience. Please follow my advice at your own risk.

Like what you’ve read? Please share it!

About the author

Tara Marlow

Tara Marlow is the founder/writer/photographer/creative genius behind www.TravelFarEnough.com.
She's ditched the desk, emptied the nest and now she's embarking on a new adventure to find herself in the world, inspiring others, like herself, to do the same. She's now travelling the world full time.
Since March 2017, she has completed a 10-month road trip through Australia; Spent 5 weeks solo road tripping through New Zealand; She drove solo from L.A. to Chicago via Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Santa Fe and Texas; She has spent time on the south coast of Iceland; She's explored various parts of the U.K.; She walked almost 800km across Spain, walking the Camino de Santiago; 3 weeks were spent discovering Japan; And now she's someone in the world, planning the next adventure (and capturing her breath, most likely!).
You can find Travel Far Enough on the web, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Website: www.travelfarenough.com
Photography website: www.travelfarenough.smugmug.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/travelfarenough
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/travelfarenough/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/travelfarenough/
LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/marlowtara

I've ditched the (corporate) desk, emptied the nest and now I'm on a Worldwide Trek.

Since leaving Australia, I've road tripped from the South Island to the North Island of New Zealand in five weeks. Driven from San Francisco to L.A., over to Texas then up to Chicago for another five-week road trip. I've been to Iceland and the U.K. I've walked almost 800 km across Spain on the Camino de Santiago. Now I'm off to Japan. Afterwards, I'll do a few housesits and then...who knows.

I want to inspire you to take the leap to make changes in your life. Life really is too short to simply exist in your life.

Join the community and share your dream life with me. I'd love to help you get there.

Want to Join The Journey?

Subscribe and you'll receive a weekly update from of me regaling stories from 'the road', links to what's posted on the website for the week and insight into what's brewing... as well as other goodies I share with the community, including a secret Facebook group.